The present invention relates generally to household products and specifically to a collapsible drying apparatus for convenient drying, storage, and transportation. The need for this invention arises in typical households. It is particularly difficult to dry certain garments used in the house hold, especially those made out of heavy fabrics such as wool. Such garments must be laid on a smooth surface and air-dried over a period of time.
Several prior art devises have attempted to provide solutions to this problem. However, none provide the convenient, economical, and easy to use features of the present invention. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,213,14 to Zheng discloses a method and apparatus for folding and collapsing an object incorporating a flexible loop. The need for a cable having its ends passing through an opening and then tied to second and third points along the loop restricts the use of the object in the drying process. Furthermore, the invention does not allow both sides of the garment to be freely exposed to air movement. U.S. Pat. No. 4,862,602 to Krill teaches a collapsible drying rack including a series of horizontal tubular plastic frame elements connected together by corner elements and a mesh sheet mounted on the frame. However, taking apart such a device appears to be a laborious process and storing it is a challenge in relatively narrow places, such as a traveler's bag. Reliability may be a problem also, because plastic elements tend to break easily. U.S. Pat. No. 4,697,357 to Van Vliet discloses a clothes-drying platform composed of a net stretched between frame members knitted through the margins of the net. The platform can be supported alternatively by swingable, retractable legs, by suction cups, or by a suspension sling. The platform is not foldable and, therefore, is harder to transport or to store.
It is an object of this invention to provide a collapsible drying apparatus that is easy to set up, easy to fold into a compact configuration, and to be conveniently stored and transported. It is a further object of this invention to provide such an apparatus that can be sturdily supported in a convexly arcuate position so that air can freely circulate above and below the object or garment to be dried. Another object of this invention is to provide a method for forming and collapsing a drying apparatus that is effortless and involves a minimal number of steps.